apocalypsehowcomm | (mingle) It must be party time

Entry tags:

(mingle) It must be party time

Who: Ren Amamiya, Wanda Maximoff, you!
When: 12th of September
Where: Good Harbor Beach
Summary: Here's the barbecue log! Eating, playing games, having a bonfire and sleep-over on the beach!
Warnings: Alcohol? Ghost stories?

ɪ. ᴡᴇʟᴄᴏᴍᴇ

Congratulations, you've made it to the Good Harbor Beach September barbecue! With the weather cooling, but still pleasant enough, it's a pleasure to have a hangout involving ADI's residents and those who live at Bonnie's. There are still so many people who don't know one another, and many to strengthen bonds with, so the hours your dearest Wanda and Ren spend cooking and flipping and seasoning are nothing but rewarding! Seeing people enjoying themselves is great and it's motivating for them to keep doing these encounters every now and then.

On the menu, we have:
- Burgers;
- Steaks with jacked potato sides;
- Ribs;
- Zucchini-and-Pecorino fritters;
- Several different salads, including ovcharska;
- Aubergine kebabs with charred onion salsa;
- Salmon yakitori;
- Takoyaki;
- Cupcakes
- Apples and honey;
- Cherry dumplings;
- Sarmale filled with rice;
- Bundevara (pumpkin pie);

For drinks, there's a selection of alcohol, as well as coffee, water, tea, and a variety of sodas. Take in the nice view, jump on the ocean, sink your toes in the sand and enjoy yourselves. There aren't any usable tables, but there are several blankets on the floor for your perusal.

ɪɪ. ᴛɪᴍᴇ ᴛᴏ ᴘᴀʀᴛʏ

With bellies full, now it's when the real fun begins. There are a few decks of cards being passed around, as well as one of their single tables now organized to a beer-pong competition. Individually, games such as Never Have I Ever, as well as Truth or Dare can be seen, and those who wish to use their skills for entertaining are more than welcome to do so.

A little bonding here, a little drunken chatting there, this is your time to shine!

ɪɪɪ. ᴀ ʙᴏɴꜰɪʀᴇ

With those who have a curfew to worry about in mind, a bonfire is lit, and a few tents are set around the beach (may have to be shared). If anyone's got a nice story, now it's the time to share it, or perhaps if anyone can play an instrument, it's about time to break it out of its case. The night will be lively until the early hours of the morning, and of course, mindful of those who couldn't stay up this late.

The next morning, everyone will be properly thanked for their attendance and tupperwares will be distributed with leftovers for those who'd like to take some food home, the beach will be cleaned impeccably and everyone will go their own way, hopefully with smiles and a new sense of unity and connection from the amazing night they've just experienced.

ɪᴠ. ᴀ ʟɪᴛᴛʟᴇ ᴏᴏᴄ ɴᴏᴛᴇ

(Please put in your top-level subject line or prompt line whether it's okay to threadjack! Just to keep things more dynamic, we encourage it!)

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Jaeger's answer to that is careful, thoughtful.

"As a professional, I'm used to a certain amount of discretion, but I think at least some of us here have been in situations in the past where our...employers didn't have our best interests in mind. So I can understand wanting to understand motivations and general moral standards of the higher-ups.

"And we do need a certain amount of information to be able to do our jobs properly. For whatever reason we might not be getting that."

"They're not HYDRA. My handlers." Which is, frankly, enough to make him see the ADI in a more positive light than most, probably. Especially given their stated purpose is protection. He isn't supposed to like things, but he does like that. (Privately.)

"Though intel on the last mission was. Lacking," he can admit. He might not engage with the others on the network, but he does read it pretty closely. "It was not entirely insufficient, either."

Handlers. Well that strikes a bit close to home, and Jaeger nods soberly.

"I still feel like it might have been a test of our abilities and our...reliability. We're new and still trying to get used to an entirely new world, not just a job. And seeing how we go into something, what questions we ask and what work we do ourselves, that's important information for them to gather."

He scuffs at the sand with his boot. "I'm willing to see how it plays out, but I have to admit that the most reassuring part of all this is that most of us seem to have a bit of common sense, and willingness to work together."

"Yes," he says. "Most of us."

A pause. He looks sidelong over at Jaeger, not at his face, but in his general direction. He's had a couple people pitch this theory to him, and he thinks maybe this guy would have an opinion. And he wants to know it. "Do you think ADI is actually trying to help the fear-entities. Instead of stop them?"

He huffs softly, not quite a laugh. "There's always a few, don't get me wrong. But...we mostly seem to recognize the seriousness of it all."

The question actually surprises him a bit, and he gives it a moment of thought before he answers. It's a big question.

"I don't know." Just as it deserves serious thought, it deserves an honest answer, and Jaeger really isn't sure. "I think they're serious about us not using our abilities and tempting the Powers. Everything I've seen so far seems to lead me to believe that they're legitimate as far as investigating and stopping paranormal incidents, though I have some questions about their tactics. How far they're willing to go to accomplish their goals."

He takes a deep breath, squats, picks up a stone and rolls it over in his hand. Something to fidget with, while he thinks.

"Using the powers themselves? It's possible. It's easy enough to fall into that trap."

One he'd fallen into before, himself, and a big part of the reason that he doesn't entirely trust his impressions. ADI had too much in common with Brighter Dawn, and it was going to take time and attention to sort out all those feelings.

"I don't doubt that they have plenty of secrets, though. Whatever their actual intentions are. And not every individual within the organization is necessarily following the same rules or intentions."

"I have no powers," Winter says, dismissive. As far as he's aware, his strength and healing isn't a power, it's just how he was built. Created. No one ever really told him about the ins and outs of his serum, and what little he worked out himself from comparing himself to Steve or the Red Skull has been wiped away so many times it's long gone.

But the answer isn't reassuring. Of course, it shouldn't matter. If he has orders, he should follow them, but... it matters. He doesn't want-- he should be helping. Doing good work, to protect. Even if it's dirty sometimes, even if it's bloody, he's made to protect. "So they could be only wanting the powers for themselves. To hurt."

Jaeger simply nods, whether he believes Winter or not. He has no reason not to, though almost certainly he's keeping mental track of the abilities of those around him. It's just good sense, especially working in a group the way they're expected to.

There's no telling when he might be partnered with someone, and it's easier to work with someone when you know they can handle themselves. Jaeger is oddly sure that Winter can handle himself, no matter how much or little the man admits to.

"I think they're trying to do the right thing, overall," he says after a few seconds. "If I believed otherwise, I wouldn't be here. But I want to know for sure, and that means staying around anyway...to watch and learn, both about ADI and the world in general. There's something like the Powers in my world, and they're very much...not a good thing. So it doesn't surprise me to see something similar here. Even if it's even worse."

He's silent for a long moment, looking out over the water again. He's been told for... longer than he can remember... that they were saving the world. (Give the world the freedom it deserves. Yeah, because I know what that looks like.) He's not sure if they ever really were. And now he doesn't know here, either.

It doesn't matter. If he has orders, he'll follow them. Nothing's really changed.

"What are they like in your world. The things like these powers."

Jaeger can't be nearly that accepting of his lot, but he wants to believe that ADI is trying to do good things. He'll do his best, but it will be with a careful eye on things.

He leans back on his heels slightly as he considers Winter's question, rubbing at his chin with one curled finger before he answers.

"Hungry," he finally says, because that sums up so much of the horrors he's seen. Including what's driven him in the past, that's put the spirit of the Hunt in him and made him what he is today. "Cunning. And patient. They exist...sideways to the rest of us, and they can't come into this world unless someone lets them in. Speaks their names. Gives them power."

It feels wrong just to be talking about it, but Winter had asked and it's important knowledge, Jaeger thinks. What's true in his world about Powers is even more true here, that line of similarity between the Entities and the things that Jaeger had heard called angels and demons and gods.

"I don't know how true it is here, but it seems to be similar. Except that here, they're already in the world and looking for more. And in my world, not all magic is connected to these things. A lot of us have it naturally, and it's just a tool, a natural force. We master it, and there's no good or evil to it except for what it's used for."

When you haven't had any choice but to be accepting for so long, it's a little easier when faced with a similar-but-not-as-awful situation again, really. The very fact that he's considering motive and collecting intel at all is, in fact, progress. The ADI, unlike HYDRA, is not particularly interested in beating him down for showing interest in the whys of things.

So is his mild, if concealed, disgust for the word "magic". It's just so messy and doesn't make sense and he has no idea how to counter it. "So you have magic, in your world," he surmises from that "we".

Jaeger is used to distaste and uncertainty at the concept of magic- where he's from, most people don't believe in it at all and it's mostly restricted to the hidden underbelly of the world.

"We do," he confirms with a nod. "Not everyone has it. Not everyone even knows about it. But some people are just born with abilities, often in family bloodlines." A slight pause, before he decides to say more. "...It doesn't always end well. There are also organizations dedicated to keeping these kinds of secrets, and it works out about as well as you can imagine."

Secrets. Corruption. Power and greed.

Winter makes a noncommittal little noise. None of that is useful knowledge. Practical.

Then he asks, because surely someone with familiarity to it will have some idea: "How do you recognize it? Combat it?" He frowns, just a little, and admits, "This is a significant hole in my training."

Jaeger has to think about that one because admitting the weaknesses of magic is admitting his own weaknesses. It's not exactly wise to give away one's Achille's heel to a relative stranger, even one that you're supposed to be working with.

But after a moment, he decides that he can share something.

"Discipline and willpower will help keep you from being influenced by certain types of magic. Awareness of your surroundings. Also, magic seldom fools electronics and often shows up as a distortion or abnormality in photographs. That's part of why I carry a camera."

He presses his lips together, considering further. His voice is still quiet in the hush of the beach, and his words calmly matter-of-fact. "Magic takes a lot of concentration and focus. It's hard to counter at times...usually the best approach is to disrupt the mage directly. Incapacitate them, and whatever they're doing magically will likely go away."

"Physical attacks are still useful, then." Which is good, given that's all he's got. And also what he's really good at. "Electronics are not fooled. Only imaging electronics? Or are other mechanical things safe?" He holds up his left hand and pulls the glove off, flexing the fingers with a mechanical whir, for Jaeger to see the firelight glint off the plates.

That gets a second look from Jaeger, a blink of surprise because it's new technology to him. He's seen prosthetics before, but nothing quite that advanced, and it's worth the extra bit of attention.

"I would probably be careful if you see someone throwing lightning around," he comments wryly after a moment. "I have to admit, that's more technology than I'm familiar with in my world, so I don't have much in the way of reference for it. But it might be useful in some situations, such as some types of illusions, or spells that specifically target organic matter."

The smile is still a sardonic little twist of his mouth as he adds, "And of course, if you punch a mage in the head a few times, they'll usually stop whatever they're doing. Physical attacks are very useful, though at least some of us train to be able to use our abilities in close quarters."

The hand comes down, the glove comes back on. Hastily, almost. The reminder of punching someone in the head a few times--

--well, in a mission, he'll do it, sure. But for a moment, the memory of the former stupid target's badly beaten face surges up in his mind. It's uncomfortable. He doesn't like thinking about it. He focuses on the practical as much as a distraction as anything else.

"It's bulletproof," he says after a beat. "Electricity can disable it temporarily, but there is a reboot motion. What would magic in close quarters look like?"

There's a lot of unpleasant images that come with the current topic of conversation. Trying to manage a spell with blood pouring from his mouth and broken nose is a memory that's entirely too sharp and brutal for Jaeger to escape completely, but it's there, first hand experience in trying to cast magic while injured.

Not a pleasant or easy prospect, though the alternative was usually worse.

He nods quietly as Winter covers his hand up again, both of them pushing away the memories. "Most of us use words and gestures to focus our power, but some of us can cast magic with as little as a small wave. Larger magic often requires a ritual circle or physical focus items. Gemstones, metal, wood." He hesitates at that last, reluctant to continue. "Sometimes things like blood and bones, too. Sacrifice is very powerful magic, very dangerous."

He can't help but think of that body in the bag Yelena found but couldn't reach, and then never found again. He frowns out over the water. "So if I break a magic person's arms, they probably can't cast their magic. In battle. And if I find any ritual... ish. Items. I should smash them."

He has a plan. It's not a very in-depth plan, but it's still a plan, and that's better than he had been before this conversation.

So, he half-turns in Jaeger's direction, and says gravely, "Thank you. This was helpful."

"It's very hard to concentrate when you're in pain," Jaeger agrees quietly. "There are always exceptions, but that would properly distract most mages."

There's a flicker of smile, because as grim as the topic is, it's a good feeling, knowing that he's given Winter some help. That someone else here now knows something about fighting magic.

"I'm happy to try and answer questions when I can. I might not answer all of them, but someone else here should have an idea of how to deal with these things."

"So far everything has died like a human would," Winter shrugs. "Even if they could change shapes or trap people in skins." So he's going to keep on as if the next strange monster is also going to die like a human would, up until something doesn't.

And when that happens, well, he'll think of something. He has tactical flexibility. Even if it requires fleeing and regrouping later.

"From what I understand, it might not be true of everything, but human innovation and technology has come a long way toward leveling the field." A brief, wry quirk of the corner of his mouth. There's things to be afraid of on all sides, and it's gone a long way toward some sort of equilibrium between the different worlds.

There's always things to fear.

"I think we're all learning. This world has some things in common with mine, but it's not quite the same, so it would be foolish to assume." He shrugs his broad shoulders, his hands finding the pockets of his pants as he considers that. For all his experience, he's still very much off balance and it's strange to admit it. But honesty matters, he thinks.

"More in common with yours than with mine," Winter offers. "So I will take your advice. But I will also keep my guns and knives." So many people here aren't trained in combat in any way, especially not as rigorously as Winter himself is. He wants to keep his team alive. Safe. So he's going to be as ready as possible.

"It certainly seems to look that way," Jaeger agrees. "But I've never regretted learning to shoot, either. For whatever that's worth." That arm alone seems to prove that Winter's world is yet another very different place, even if it's not a common sight. But some things hold true and the world, whatever it is, seems to always need fighters. And sometimes, the best weapon is the unexpected one.

Jaeger gazes back toward the tents and those who have managed to find sleep in them. "I'll let you be, then. I may try and get a little sleep while it's quiet, but it's been good talking to you."

He nods solemnly. "I'll keep watch," he promises. "So you can sleep." If he can. He'll understand if that isn't as reassuring for Jaeger as it would be for someone like Kate or even Yelena.

He knows it wouldn't be particularly reassuring to himself, after all.

Oddly, it is a little reassuring to Jaeger, even though it's too soon to trust fully. Exhaustion has taken its toll for too many years now, and he's willing to grab onto whatever small relief he can. Even if it's a fitful nap in a tent by the water, it's still something more than he's had before.

He's not alone, and that's a change that will take some getting used to but one he's happy to have.

"Thank you," he returns, just as solemnly, before he starts back up the sand toward the patch of tents and the smoldering end of the bonfire.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

(mingle) It must be party time

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